My friend had at once to provide lodging for the two soldiers who themselves brought him this order. France was, I thought, in point of liberty, two centuries and a half behind England; for, by the Petition of Right, it was enacted in the reign of Charles I." that no soldier shall be quartered on the subject without his own consent." Nevertheless, if my memory does not play me false, more than one of George III.'s governors attempted to quarter soldiers on the citizens of New England. That Frenchmen should so often have proved restive under the law causes little surprise to those who know how meddling their central government has at all times been. I have a curious document which shows that, less than sixty years ago, in France, no one might take a pailful of water from the sea without first obtaining permission at the custom house. The tax on salt, which was heavy, was not to be evaded by the use of sea-water. A license was granted, on my father's application, to the landlady of the house in which he had taken lodgings: BOULOGNE-SUR-MER, 22 Juin, 1837. Administration des Douanes, 1ère Division. Il est permis à Made Talavera demeurant à Boulogne, de faire prendre à la mer tous les jours, pendant un mois, six seaux d'eau pour de baines.1 1 In the original it is either " de baines" or "de bainer." It is not "des bains." Les Dépositaires des Caisses M Rue d'Angiveller AU NOM DE LA LOI. Roubinet runt. ou la personne qui occupe le local, logera, pendant un Officier, Militaires. Juitles 22 ruller 1871 Pour M. le Maire le Chef du Bureau militaire. Le chef du poste de la jetée de l'est mentionnera les quantités d'eau enlevées, et renverra la présente permission au bureau de la Direction. Pour le Directeur des Douanes, Le Premier Commis de la Direction, ROUGET.1 When I was staying at Vichy, some years ago, I saw an extraordinary instance of that centralization of the government which, next to the corruption of Louis Napoleon and of his generals, laid France low at the feet of Germany. In the bathroom was placarded the number of towels allowed to each bather. This regulation was issued by the mayor of the town, was countersigned at Moulins by the prefect of the department, and was approved at Paris by the Minister of the Interior. Neither Frenchman nor foreigner, though he took his bath at a distance of more than two hundred miles from Paris, was overlooked by the paternal eye of the government. Of his lawful number of towels no hireling should deprive him. 1 BOULOGNE-SUR-MER, June 22, 1837. Custom House, First Department. Permission is hereby given to Mme Talavera, an inhabitant of Boulogne, to have six pails of sea-water fetched from the sea for baths every day for a month. The head of the guard stationed on the eastern jetty will report the quantity of water taken each day, and will return this license to the chief office. For the Collector of Customs, ROUGET, Chief Clerk. From France I shall take my readers across the Pyrenees to Spain, which in its turn was shaken by revolution. My correspondent was a young officer of the army. He wrote to me as follows: MADRID, IIth March, 1873. DEAR SIR, -The letters from the special correspondents of the London newspapers will have already informed you of the state of my unhappy country. You will, no doubt, by association of ideas, now and then thought of me while you were reading of them. If you saw my room at present you would think of the assortment of fire arms and small arms that Robinson Crusoe kept in his dwelling, when he was expecting an attack from the canibals. As unfortunately the army is now become so demoralized through Republican preachings, socialism, infidelity, and as the city is full of return convicts, french comunists, unemployed worksmen and all scum of society, we are in continual aprehension of having our houses sacked by the mob. After two or three days of desagreable panic the middle classes, stimulated by the example of the higher orders, are arming themselves. There is scarcely a fire arm that has not been bought up, so that every house is become a military arsenal. In my house we mustered about thirty men, what with coachmen, servants, aides |